Increasing customer demands and a need for an individual corporate identity are all factors influencing the design of an interior cabin.
Cabin compartments in a passenger aircraft are subject to a fixed sequential process of development, manufacturing of the compartments, certification and installation of them and thus require considerable investment in money and time. As customized cabins are now subject to shorter production cycles, such a delay is often not acceptable.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,839,694 and 5,244,269 each disclose, a hat rack, i.e., an overhead baggage compartment in the passenger section of an aircraft. In general, baggage compartments in an aircraft cabin include a housing and a hinged cover which may be latched. In the case of movable bins, they have a combination of a housing and hinged cover. The housing and hinged cover frequently include composite materials such as glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP) or carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) for forming outer layers and fibers such as Aramid fibers for forming a honeycomb core. In a hinged cover, a latch such as one constructed from a lever mechanism or a latching mechanism may be installed into a recess.
In an overhead baggage compartment, which has increasingly become enlarged in volume due to increased passenger traffic, the load capability of the hinged cover, and particularly, the latch, have to adapt in order to cope with increased weight demands. However, recesses and openings in a fiber structure reduce the strength of the baggage compartment and limits its maximum interior volume. In order for a latch to be placed in a baggage compartment, the recesses often have to made of similar composite material.
Frequently, such a latch includes a guide rod that operates on a latching mechanism. Such a rod extends along the inside of a movable bin and separately covers the baggage in order to protect it. However, this increases weight in an aircraft cabin. Furthermore, a latch having a covered rod leads to the tendency of the loading surface of the baggage compartment of being uneven in shape. Additionally, the exposed region of the latch may increase the chances of an injury to passengers.